Published 4:00 am, Saturday, February 19, 2005

A lawsuit seeking class-action status was filed in San Francisco charging Apple Computer Inc. with selling used computers as new, setting warranties to expire prematurely and engaging in unfair business practices against its authorized resellers.

The 26-page complaint was hurriedly submitted late Thursday to Superior Court after Congress passed a bill that would curb future class-action lawsuits, David Franklin, one of the three attorneys who filed the case, said Friday.

The suit names three California consumers, including a pair of Bay Area residents, and two former Apple authorized resellers as class representatives. Class members would include consumers who purchased an Apple computer starting Jan. 1, 1995. The same date applies for dealers.

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The lawsuit accuses Apple of not only selling used equipment as new, but also shortening warranty periods by starting coverage when the product is shipped to a reseller, not when the equipment is actually purchased by the consumer. The suit also alleges Apple didn't get proper state licenses for its repair and service facilities.

In addition, the complaint said that Apple improperly used dealers' own customer lists to solicit business.

Specifically, Apple engaged in unlawful business practices, misappropriation of trade secrets and breach of contract, and violated the Consumer Legal Remedies Act and Song Beverly (Consumer Warranty) Act, the suit said.

"Apple has been treating people very badly, and we're trying to make it right," said Anthony Ferrigno, a plaintiff attorney.

Joe Weingarten, a former Dayton, Ohio, reseller who is a plaintiff in the case, said a class-action lawsuit is necessary because business owners who sell Apple products are afraid that if they file individual lawsuits, the Cupertino firm will terminate their dealer contracts.

"This is an opportunity to represent all of the dealers and the consumers who have had problems in one shot," said Weingarten, who now heads the Apple Reseller Association.

The allegations, particularly those made by the resellers, are similar to civil lawsuits already filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court.

In fact, the lawyers in the class-action case are also representing Tom Santos, the owner of Macadam in San Francisco, who has a civil claim against Apple.

However, Santos' complaint will not be folded into the latest lawsuit because he has other specific issues such as allegations that Apple participated in anti-competitive practices when it opened a flagship retail store a few blocks away from Macadam, Franklin said.

The Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, which allows most multi-state class-action lawsuits to be transferred to federal court, was signed into law by President Bush on Friday.

Republicans have argued that state courts award huge verdicts that pad lawyers' wallets rather than benefit consumers. Democrats have alleged the bill is intended to save big business from multimillion-dollar verdicts in state courts.